Last year during Welcome Week (the week in August before classes start) some friends and I went to an event being held at the Kimmel Center--the Nuyorican Poetry Slam. It was incredible. These poets/performers are extremely talented and gave amazing spoken word performances. That same night I learned about the Nuyorican Poets Cafe located on E. 3rd Street between Avenues B and C but I never had a chance to go.
Well, yesterday in my Caribbean Latinos class (the same one I went to the Brooklyn Museum for) we learned about Nuyorican poetry and had a speaker come in and share tons of information about it. I loved the poetry and really enjoyed reading it. I then learned the history of it and how it began in New York City by people from the Caribbean.
I don't want to give a whole historical schpiel about it but I just thought it was yet another great moment of connecting the experiences I've had in the city to my academic encounters in the classroom. That is certainly one of the best parts about going to school in Manhattan--the overabundance of resources!!!
PS-Definitely try to check out the Cafe some time--the artists are extremely talented!!!